


Ether

by gingeringfigs



Series: Plot Bunnies Fornicating with my Brain [3]
Category: Naruto
Genre: Character Turned Into a Ghost, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-05-10
Updated: 2013-05-10
Packaged: 2017-12-11 11:09:22
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 767
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/798032
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gingeringfigs/pseuds/gingeringfigs
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A young Naruto stumbles on a hidden glade and a ghost. He ends up making a new friend.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Ether

**ETHER**

Naruto had never been here before and he should know, having travelled over every single inch of Konoha in his explorations. He knew every alley and street, even the secret ones which shinobi used, like the back of his hand. It was crucial to his survival after all (and to a lesser extent, his successful escapes after pranks).

The place he now found himself in was a small glade. Above him, there was a small hole in the ceiling that he had fallen through, a pitiful broken piece of wood still dangling from the edge. He was lucky that he hadn't gotten any splinters or severe injuries in the unexpected fall during his frantic escape from his angry prank victims (they'd tried to over-charge him again and he was having none of it!)

Despite being underground, the glade was surprisingly verdant and there was a tranquil air to the place. It was heightened by the beautiful glow of sunlight spilling in from the hole above and the bioluminescent glow of phosphoric moss and fireflies. Naruto breathed an awed exclamation, " _Wow_."

"Who's there?" A young voice called out, causing him to jump. He didn't see anyone else in the glade and his sharp ears also didn't hear any one. Cautiously looking around for a place to hide (none in this open glade), Naruto shouted, "Show yourself first!"

"…You can actually hear me?" The voice sounded surprised and there was a painfully familiar note of hope in it. It also sounded much closer but Naruto still couldn't see anyone. His eyes darting around and peering into the shadows at the edges of the glade, he replied, "Yeah, of course. I can hear you. Just where are you hiding?!"

"Oh! I'm sorry!" The voice sounded sheepish. "Is this better?" On cue, a young boy shimmered into view. He was wearing a pale blue long-sleeved hoodie with black shorts and sandals. He also had bright blonde hair the exact shade of Naruto's and his eyes were a slightly darker shade of blue than Naruto's eyes. He also seemed to be about Naruto's age. But there was one very big difference – he was see-through, the colours translucent. Naruto gaped for a few long seconds before he finally opened his mouth and screamed in panic, "AAAAAAAHHHHH! GHOST!"

Flustered, the ghost tried to calm the panicking boy down, "I'm harmless! I'm not going to hurt you! I promise."

"AAAAAAHHHHH! I'M GOING TO DIE! AAAAAAAAAHHHHH!"

"Oh for the love of-" The ghost palmed his face when Naruto refused to calm down. As unbelievable as it was, he thought he might actually be getting a migraine from the sheer volume of Naruto's screams. He was just like…who was that person? He couldn't even remember what the person looked like!

Growling in frustration, he reached forward and clapped his hand over the boy's mouth, vainly hoping that it might shut him up. Much to his surprise, his hand didn't pass through the boy! Successfully silencing the boy, the ghost could feel warmth flooding through him like he had been dunked into a hot bath. Before he could ponder what was happening, he felt something slimy and wet swipe over his fingers.

"OH EW! GROSS!" Instantly letting go of the boy, the ghost indignantly wiped his damp hand that Naruto slobbered on, over his pants. "Did you really have to do _that_?" Naruto stuck out his tongue at him and crossed his arms, "It was the only way to get you to let me go!"

"I was trying to keep you quiet before you brought the roof down!" The ghost had never felt so _irritated_ before in his afterlife, never mind that the new stranger was the first person who could see and talk with him in years. Naruto looked up at the new skylight and blithely quipped, "I already did earlier when I fell down."

His irritation quickly ebbed at the absurd truth and the ghost laughed so hard that he bent over and ectoplasmic tears sprang to his eyes. Wiping his eyes, he smiled brightly at Naruto and said, "I needed that laugh. It's so depressing being by myself with no one to listen or talk with. I'm Minato. What's your name?"

Naruto blinked at Minato, not quite sure of what to make of him. While he was a _ghost,_ Minato didn't seem at all that scary! In fact, he seemed quite a lot like him… With a decisive nod, Naruto grinned, "I'm Uzumaki Naruto! Nice to meetcha!"

Minato smiled wider, "Same here."

"So um, do you know how to get out of here?"

**Author's Note:**

> In this AU, Namikaze Minato wasn't devoured by Shinigami because of Kyuubi's Yin half exerting its will. Instead, the two wound up fighting each other for dominance and Minato won...at a cost. Still a ghost (with a few extra abilities), he loses all his memories of his adult self and reverts back to childhood. He's not locked to a place like a normal ghost would be, but keeps returning to the glade because that's where he subconsciously feels most at home. He's desperately lonely because no one can see or hear him and it's many years before Naruto falls into his glade.
> 
> Despite Naruto's fear of ghosts, there's an apparent connection between them (quite obviously so when Minato can apparently turn "human" again after he feeds off Naruto) and they become very close friends (possibly codependent, considering their issues) through out Naruto's Academy years. Intriguingly, coming into contact with Naruto also somehow kickstarts Minato's ageing and they age in tandem - even if Minato still remains a ghost invisible to everyone else but Naruto. Minato never regains his memories of his "past self" even if he does have his suspicions on who he was (bloody obvious when your face is right there on the Hokage Mountain and Naruto keeps raving about the 4th – no, he's not jealous of his other self!)
> 
> As they age, Minato finds himself with conflicting feelings for Naruto; fatherly because he still has subconscious remnants of his past self, romantic because he has come to love Naruto very dearly as a friend and wants more (he is worried that it might be because Naruto subconsciously reminds him of his former self's wife, Kushina). Needless to say, it is Naruto who initiates the relationship after a revelation.
> 
> Minato also really, really dislikes his other self, paradoxically disliking himself as well because he perceives that they are responsible for much of Naruto's unhappiness. This also leads him to reject his past memories, preferring to stay the innocent Minato. When the duo eventually have to master their respective Kyuubi halves, it brings Minato in contact with the shade of his adult self (let's call him Yondaime for easier distinction) in their shared mindscape and it's an explosive encounter with Naruto ironically refereeing their conversation.
> 
> Yondaime has already known about his younger self's relationship with Naruto and is rather disapproving, which does not do wonders for Minato's temper. Minato already has issues with Yondaime's handling of the Kyuubi issue (as well as personal insecurity, fear and etc) and snaps that if he hadn't been around, Naruto would have been worse off. It's a wonder that Kyuubi doesn't take advantage of the quarrel to make loose. Naruto and a re-emerged Kushina wind up having to break up the fight and it soon becomes clear that the younger Minato is not quite actually Yondaime's younger self. Instead, he's an amalgamation of Yondaime's and Kyuubi's identities – though it is very creepy for Yondaime to see someone with his face making out with his son (HAHAHAHA).
> 
> The AU eventually ends with Minato eventually becoming permanently solid/human much to their joy.


End file.
